Urinary Incontinence

Urinary Incontinence is accidental leakage of urine from the bladder. This problem may affect up to one in three women and may be a distressing and embarrassing problem. Most commonly urinary incontinence is related to a weakness of the pelvic floor muscles (stress incontinence), an over-active bladder (urge incontinence) or a combination of the two.

To assess the cause of urinary incontinence a detailed history is taken, the questionnaire (120kb) provided is a useful starting point and it would be helpful if you could complete this prior to your appointment. A gynaecological examination is usually performed as there are some gynaecological conditions which may exacerbate or be associated with urinary incontinence in women. For example, a uterus which is enlarged because of fibroids may press on the bladder leading to incontinence and many women with incontinence also have associated prolapse related to weakness of the pelvic floor. Further information may need to be obtained through specialized urodynamic testing and we will often ask you to complete a frequency-volume chart (120kb) to gain a clearer picture of the cause of the incontinence.

The first step in managing urinary incontinence often involves referral to a physiotherapist with particular experience in incontinence and pelvic floor rehabilitation. Some women, particularly those with urge incontinence will require medication to reduce the activity of the detrusor (bladder wall) muscle. In some situations a surgical procedure for stress incontinence such as a laparoscopic Burch Colposuspension or a trans-vaginal tape procedure may be appropriate.

Download Questionaire (120kb)
Download Chart (120kb)

These forms in this section are in PDF (portable document format). You will require the Acrobat Reader to view them. The Acrobat Reader can be downloaded by clicking on the icon below.